Researchers have developed an artificial intelligence (AI) tool that can predict which men with prostate cancer will benefit from the drug that reduces the risk of dying.
The drug called abiraterone has been described as a ‘gamechanger’ in treating prostate cancer, which is the most common form of cancer in men. It is currently used in patients with high-risk prostate cancer that hasn’t yet spread.
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The new AI test, built by a team from the US, UK and Switzerland, shows which men will most likely benefit from abiraterone. The tool analyses tumour biopsy images to identify features invisible to the human eye. By doing so, it can pinpoint the men most likely to benefit from the drug while sparing others from potential side effects such as high blood pressure, liver issues, diabetes, and heart attacks.
“This research shows that we can pick out the people who will respond best to abiraterone and those who will do well from standard treatment alone – hormone therapy and radiotherapy,” said Professor Nick James, co-lead of the study and expert at the Institute of Cancer Research in London.
Funded by Prostate Cancer UK, the Medical Research Council, and Artera, the study trialled the test on biopsy images from more than 1,000 men with high-risk prostate cancer that had not spread. The AI test identified the 25% of men in the group most likely to benefit from the abiraterone.
The study co-leader Prof Gert Attard, of the UCL Cancer Institute, said: “This study shows, in a very large cohort of patients, that novel algorithms can be used to extract information from routinely available pathology slides to tailor these treatments to specific patients and minimise over treatment whilst maximising the chance of cure.”
